As I still didn’t find the time to fly again I’ll repeat my May list once again. Sorry for the consequent lack of movement in my list!
B.A., if it’s too late then just ignore this one.
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Not too late - next Sunday is the closest to the change of month so we have a week 
Wouldn’t the DoubleEnder tick the box for @RagingWombat839 ?
Maybe. Although I was after something that looks a little bit more… er, normal? 
I thought the Wilga might be a good candidate as that seems to have a lot of options, but I didn’t buy it in the last sale, so will think about it again in the next one.
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LOL, ok 
Let’s break this down for you then. What does a bush plane need?
- Good views (tick) - engines being up there and high wings gives a good view as cabin can be far forwards.
- Power (tick) - I was doing flips and loops within seconds of taking off
- Off-road wheels (tick) - and they can get properly dirty (as does the rest of the body).
- Ability to fly slow (tick) - those flaps really slow it down but you still get good control.
It’s totally designed around it’s function, so it has ended up looking like that. I like that approach to engineering personally. It’s a pretty striking design and not a cookie-cutter GA plane like so many others. We were only complaining a few weeks ago that all “newer” planes look so identical - then we have this! Perfect remedy hahah
NOTE: I have only flown it for about 30 mins so far as I haven’t been on the PC this weekend, but I am gonna cane it tonight! I noticed it is a bit prone to nosing over on braking so not gonna be great for my STOL landing races! I will be focusing on my technique to get it stopped and see what’s what.
OK another option then, the Porter? It’s got fairly advanced avionics, but still character and definitely bush-able. Or the Islander - bigger but it has abilities that belie it’s size!
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You say ‘weeks’ as in the plural of ‘week’.
Interesting pessimism there… 
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HAHA, OK maybe I should have said DAYS 
It needs 147 votes - I don’t think we have that many regulars here though 
Well I’m not someone to ever argue against logic. I’ll explore your suggested options thanks!
Although for now I just want to fly my Fenix bus so there’s no hurry. 
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Yes, that’s exactly right. I actually haven’t had the chance to fly it yet, but I wanted to flag that the Heavy Division mod is currently not compatible.
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Three new god-like masterpieces of simulation have been announced this week, the JustFlight A300 (“b4” or so, hm but for me it´s the “A300 Classic”), the JustFlight Friendship F100, and the iniBuilds A300.
Especially the JustFlight A300 looks like being made with so much attention to detail and visual fidelity that it might rival the Fenix.
(And I still wait for the DCS F-15 that radar and it´s ground radar functions and features are TOP-NOTCH even the Egypt Pyramids can be scanned with radar including realistic radar shadow behind the Pyramids… but this is a different simulator. This too will also be an absolute top-notch quality plane and Day1 purchase.)
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Hey, good things take time right?
It’s the Zlin but only counts with the mod.
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Why are you waiting? it’s been out a few days.
You missed out handling, which is why there’s no bush planes ( unless you count the Tiger Moth ) in my list.
So with not enough time tonight to fly the A320 I thought I’d check out that Kodiak I bought. I can see why it gets such a good following, it oozes quality and so many buttons, levers, handles, doors and flaps to fiddle with! I expect I’ll be needing to make a space in my top 10 for it next month.
As it happens I’d have probably have got off the ground quicker in the Fenix than I did in the Kodi, with all the knobs to learn and the very extensive checklists. I was flying TIST to TNCM but I didn’t get very far. My propensity to fiddle was my downfall, and even though the sensible voice in my head said “leave this alone it will not end well” I couldn’t help but open the tiny little storm ventilation flap. Apparently that was enough to overstress the aircraft and put an end to me and my unfortunate passengers. Oops.
A320s must be much better built because apparently you can even open doors while they are flying along and they don’t break up at all.
On the ground?
Well that too, but in the air.
Not going to tempt this conversation spiralling into negativity but I don’t think you can say all bush planes don’t handle well (well enough). Sure there are limitations in the engine and maybe this new feature they showed where the body shape can be defined infinitely more accurately will help. For future planes. Doubt anyone will want to retrofit that to released products. But come on Got Gravel knows what he’s doing with physics at the very least
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Again, I have to wait for the Marketplace release. I don’t yet know. I almost suggested the Wilga but IFR would be a nightmare in it!
The Porter though… I really need to remember to add it to my next top ten.
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Since getting my Virpil collective, I have been flying helicopters 95% of the time. So this might well be the first all-helicopter list, in order of current preference:
- Nemeth Designs Schweizer S300
What a wonderful small training helicopter. It took me a few minutes getting used to it, but then it really clicked. Since then, it feels like an extension of my body. It goes where I want it to go, without doing much on the controls, because it reacts to the smallest cyclic inputs without being twitchy. Many users experienced a strange trim bug that will hopefully be resolved with the announced version 1.0.1. Luckily I never had that problem.
- Taog’s Hangar Alouette III
Really beautiful 3D model of a helicopter that I normally would not be interested in. But Toag brought this thing to life, with a great flight model, lots of options and details, great sounds, and subtle vibrations. Really looking forward to the work-in-progress Huey from the same developer.
- HPG H145
My number one for a long, long time, igniting my passion for helicopter flying. Great system modeling that no other developer has even tried to match. Full 4 axis auto pilot, custom avionics, SAS and trim release. The most comprehensive EFB you could imagine. Missions!!! It’s like an A320 with rotor blades.
- FlyInside 206
I have spent many, many hours in the wonderful FI 206. Wonderful flight model that can be adapted to your hardware controls and skill. Probably the only proper helicopter turbine simulation at the moment. Try flying this one in hot-and-high conditions, and you will start to notice what you are missing in all the other helicopters.
- CowanSim Bell 222B
Now for a list of CowanSim helicopters. They are a bit like the Carenado of vertical lift. All look nice, fly well, but the simulation is quite shallow compared to more ambitious developers. None the less, all these helicopters are fun to fly, and bring some variation to the life of a helicopter sim-pilot who does not have too much choice right now. There is a lot of potential, so maye the developer will be able to surprise us with some interesting features in the future. Or Asobo implements some new stuff. Whatever comes first.
When you enter the Bell 222, you immediately notice that the cockpit is very different from other helicopters. A huge panel, lots of analog gauges, limited visibility, so you feel a bit like in an airliner. Some will whistle the Airwolf tune and imagine firing missiles. I imagine having a VIP passenger in the back, making sure to fly extra smoothly so they won’t spill their martini on the way to the boardroom meeting.
- Cowansim H125
The H125 is actually quite a simple helicopter. But that’s its charm. Try some mountain rescue in the Swiss alps, or stunt flying like Fred North for the next Hollywood block buster. I just wish it had the same systems and missions as the HPG H145.
- CowanSim MD500
This on is a hot rod! Twitchy and fast, a real challenge to fly. I think the panel looks amazing, some of Cowan’s best modeling work. Not much system depth, but a lot of fun.
- CowanSim Bell 206
The first release of the Cowansim 206 was overshadowed by FlyInside’s more advanced implementation of the exact same helicopter. It also had the very annoying tendency to translate sideways when in a hover. Fortunately, CowanSim have improved the flight model and in its current state, it is much more enjoyable.
- FlyInside 47G
When the 47G was originally released, I had just started flying helicopters. I simply could not get it to fly straight, so I gave up pretty quickly. Since then it has been sitting unused in my hangar, but FI seem pretty close to releasing a major update to this iconic helicopter. So we will see if two years (!) later, I will finally learn to fly the legendary 47G.
- Asobo Cabri G2
I realize that all the helicopters listed above are payware. But if you want to get into helicopter flying, there is one good choice that is installed by default on every MSFS computer. The Cabri G2 is very comparable to the Schweizer S300 at the top of my list. Both are small two seat piston helicopters with three blade fully-articulated rotors. Both are beautifully modeled. Both have doors that don’t open. But while the S300 in MSFS can be quite tricky to control at first, the Cabri is the perfect beginner helicopter. It flies like a real helicopter, but it will not try to kill you. Just perfect to start your journey into the wonderful world of vertical lift …
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Hahaha I’m 100% certain it is!!
That sounds great!! I’d love to see a photo of how it fits into your setup
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I hesitated for a long time to order the collective because I did not know how to mount it to my office chair. But luckily it was quite simple with the additional mounting kit. The armrests on my chair are connected with screws, which made it possible to just fix the mounting plate, and then even add the armrest to the plate as well.
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